In the aftermath of a historic housing bust, rented single-family homes are on the rise in communities from coast to coast.

At least a fifth of all occupied single-family homes were rentals last year in 32 of the nation's top metropolitan regions, according to a USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. That's up from seven metros in 2006.

The growth reflects changes brought by the housing boom and bust and the enduring financial hardships imposed by the recession. Millions of homeowners lost homes to foreclosure and were forced to become renters, while others delayed homeownership.

Nationwide, 18% of occupied single-family homes last year were rentals, up from nearly 15% in 2006, show data based on the American Community Survey, an annual Census Bureau survey.

City officials say they prefer rented-out homes to vacant ones, which lead to blight. In many cases, today's single-family home renter lost a home to foreclosure.

"There's a lot of good-quality renters out there," says Micah Runner, interim economic development director in Stockton. "The issue can be when the homes are owned by people outside of the area and it's harder to get them to fix stuff."

More rentals may also lead to more classroom turnover in local schools, because renters tend to move more often than owners, says Southern California research economist John Husing.

Wealth generation will also be affected, says Michael Orr, real estate expert at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

"A good slice of our owner occupants have become tenants against their will. That's not a good thing," Orr says.

Phoenix was one of the first cities targeted by institutional investors, who are spending billions turning single-family homes into rentals alongside mom-and-pop investors.

Since Phoenix home prices bottomed in 2011, they're up about 40%, according to Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller data. That makes it harder for owner-occupants to now buy in, Orr says.